Inspiration in Winter: Some Good Reads
I refuse to give in to any temptation to hate winter, even during the gloomiest stretches of flat light and dirty snow. I like the snow. I like the quiet. I like sitting next to the frozen pond while geese murmur to each other. I'll try not to go to the extreme of getting overly romantic about winter, but it is my second-favorite season, even if I don't get to spend as much time as I'd prefer fiddling with plants.
I wrote a little bit about my off-season foraging studies and recipe creation at Zester Daily. Winter also affords me the time to read, which is where I get much of my inspiration. I enjoy catching up on all of the new flora and foraging books. I load up my bag with cookbooks at the library. I read novels that paint pictures of countries I've not yet visited. And, of course, there's much to be found online as well. Here are the sites that are feeding my mind this month, in no particular order.
Herb Geek This site is oriented more toward herbalists than foragers (these are two sides of the same coin, methinks). It consistently puts out some of the most interesting interviews I've read.
Female and Fungi My favorite site for myconerds.
Transitional Gastronomy Mia always pushes the boundaries of what can be cooked with wild edibles.
Wildness More wild food cooking inspiration, this time out of Northern California. Heather is wildly creative, but her recipes are easy to relate to and taste great.
Fellow Workers Farm Apothecary More wisdom from the world of herbalists. This site is down-to-earth, and regularly produces essays that make me cheer aloud.
MSIU Some foraging inspiration from across the pond.
Edoble I love every little window into foraging, all over the world. This is a peek at Japan.
Ukrainian Classic Cooking I spend a lot of time watching videos and reading stories about mushroom hunting in Eastern Europe. I also like to hunt down mushroom recipes from those countries.
Fruit trees of Kerala One of my dearest friends grew up in Southern India. She frequently mesmerizes me with stories of all of the edible plants there. Sometimes after we talk, I spend hours looking up the plants she has mentioned.
MysteriesInternal This is the website of an angler and writer local to my area. Even though I'm not much of an angler, I always enjoy reading her articles (and book), as she so often writes about this area that I know and love, and does so with words that raise gooseflesh on my arms.
Decolonize Your Diet I've gone back and looked at every post on the Decolonize Your Diet Facebook page. This site is dedicated to food justice and supporting traditional mesoamerican foodways. I've enjoyed seeing recipes for the foods that grow in my my region, from purslane to lamb's quarter to nopales.
